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I'lathian Enclave
The I'lathian Enclave is the official name given to the kobolds who have pillaged and destroyed countless settlements. The word "I'lathian" means 'lizard-one' in ancient Hafgarin. While they are most commonly referred to as merely kobolds, I'lathian Enclave is typically used by politicians and academics when referring to the species as a whole. History Most history regarding the kobolds is unknown. They were not stellar bookkeepers, and cared little for history or academia. Most information gathered is merely guess work combined with ancient cave paintings from pre-history. What little is known however, is that the kobolds are descended from ancient fire-breathing wyverns. It is unknown exactly when the schism occurred or what circumstance arose that allowed the modern kobold to excel, only that they share common characteristics with them. Today Kobolds are one of, if not the most numerous species on Pavonas. Their scrap city is a teeming hive, with hundreds of levels of scrap buildings, housing billions of Kobolds. However, the vast majority are nothing more than mere runts, not much more able than a common citizen. Kobolds believe in quantity, over quality. The average runt is short, scrawny, and unintelligent. However, their sheer volume of footsoldiers is nothing to underestimate. This is not to say that kobolds lack quality. In fact, while Runtz make up the vast majority of koboldkind, there are more advanced, intelligent, and far stronger variants. This is mostly attributed to the unique way in which kobolds react to arcyte. Kobolds themselves do not eat for sustenance, but instead eat to grow in size and strength. This means that a typical runt won't eat more than a couple times in his life. This is largely attributed to the greedy and hostile nature of kobold society. Those in control of the meat supply, do not share their bounty. They reserve it for themselves and their family, and other acquaintances. This often leads to the "rich" staying rich, and the "poor" staying poor. Arcyte Arcyte is not commonly used by kobolds; in fact, it is not widely known to exist. The very few who understand its true nature, keep it to themselves and use its mystical energies to pass as shamans and warlocks. Magic as a whole is widely misunderstood as simply divine blessing, bestowed by their pantheon to those worthy. Religion Kobold religion is based upon a pantheon of gods, which are nothing more than incredibly dangerous beings. Currently they are Negallath, Mallaki, and Arakash. * Negallath (Negal-lath): A Tarrasque type creature. A monstrous behemoth weighing in over 150 tons. It stands at the height of a large building, and has the ferocity of an entire nation. The Kobold worship Negallath as their god of ferocity. Negallath does not die, at least not permanently. Upon defeat, the Negallath body decomposes rapidly, its spirit essence erupting from the decaying body before splitting into 5 equal parts and dispersing across the world. Every 365 years the 5 parts coalesce before reforming the body of the Negallath. However, these essences can be captured and stored magically, preventing the monster from returning. As it stands, two remain within the Adamant Commonwealth, and one more are in the hands of the Cerulean Confederacy. Little is known about the location or who holds them. It is believed that if all five essences are collected and restored by Kobold, they can be released at will upon their enemies. It’s last death was dated sometime prior to the finding of magic. All martial Kobold worship Negallath in some form or another. * Mallaki (Mal-lah-kye): A powerful Kobold magi who has spent the better part of the century studying magic. He has achieved immortality through the use of mana crystals, as well as mastery over life & death. Mallaki was caught and summarily “executed” by the Adamant Commonwealth after being found living within the great magical cordon. The details of his death remain a mystery, as his body was burned to ash, and locked within a vault buried deep underground. The urn containing his ashes are moved from vault to vault every three decades. Current number of vaults are five total, with another being constructed. All Kobold casters & magic users worship Mallaki in some form or another. Currently, Mallaki is the most powerful Deathlost in existence. Given the fact that he has not undergone solidifaction, it is widely assumed he is still alive and gliding through the world of Pavonas looking for the right time to return. * Arakash (Are-a-kash): A massive demon of old, banished long ago from the world. A cult within the Kobold group worship Arakash as the God of trickery. It is said that the demon that owns the name Arakash, actually had it given to him by a God of the Old; the same gods who created the universe. He is ultimately responsible for the creation of all “evil” races in the world, which they do in spite of the other Gods of Old; who are responsible for the “good” races. (No race is inherently good or evil, ideologies some races view as good or hold true to their hearts, might be entirely the opposite and even considered hostile to others. This leads to conflict not of good versus evil, but of ideology versus ideology.) The Kobold worship an Avatar of the God of Old named Arakash. This Avatar was defeated nearly five thousand years ago by the combined might of all the races of the world. It was banished from the plane of existence, awaiting to return. The upper echelon of Kobold worship Arakash & the God of Old. MORE WORK TO FOLLOW -Kobold are purely carnivorous and do not eat for sustenance. -Meat is the most valuable commodity in Kobold society, it is used for trade, currency, and power. Those who control the meat supply, will control the fate of Kobold. -For the past couple millennium, a ruling caste of Kobold-- some of the strongest, smartest, toughest and fiercest-- have had majority control over the meat supplies. 90% of all butchers are directly or indirectly owned by this ruling caste. -Kobold are of the most numerous races in the known and unknown world. However, the average Kobold eats once or twice in his entire life, never gaining any new properties. This leads to large swarms of below-average footsoldiers. -Shamans are the leftovers of rampant Arcyte use by their ancestors. Most do not possess any more magical ability than to heal wounds or cure an ailment. -Warlocks still consume Arcyte relatively frequently. Kobold counterpart to a sorcerer. Only known Kobold to eat other Kobold. This cannibalism is only done when the Kobold is infused with Arcyte, allowing the Warlocks to continue to consume the magical crystal. Only large scale users of Arcyte within Kobold society. -Known to launch large scale invasions of the world from time to time, known as a Kobold Invasions. Military: Aspect General: As Kobold civilization is for all intents and purposes, a massive sprawling tent-scrap city, when in times of war or conflict with external threats, each section of the city gains a military leader. This leader either gains its position through conquest, or through riveting speeches and represents its God in all matters political, social and militarily. Three of these exist, with the possibility of more, if the Kobold were to ever worship another deity. These Kobold are the pinnacle of their species and are often believed to be able to take out entire squads of enemies. While not necessarily the largest, they are some of the the most cunning beings in the world. They usually take on the name of the deity they worship. Draazhin Brutes: These Kobold are some of the toughest, meanest, largest, and most intelligent around. They form the backbone of the elite. They serve as bodyguards, enforcers, commanders, and leaders within Kobold society. Gathered from the upper caste of Kobold, they are exceptional leaders. Standing at roughly twice the size of humans, and three times the strength of an Ork they are powerhouses. They usually are decorated in hardened scale-plate, with some of the best weaponry Kobold can craft. While not necessarily few in number, more than one is rarely ever seen in battle. On the field, they command entire hosts of Kobold, numbering between 50,000-100,000. One or two Draazhin Brutes may be in command of an entire theatre of war. They number 100 strong. Rarely do they die in combat, most die of old age, only to be replaced by a younger Draazhin. Throat Cutters: These Kobold are where the lines between the ruling caste and the rest of Kobold society are drawn. Throat Cutters are Kobold who have been able to scavenge, steal, or seize enough meat to become bigger, stronger, and more intelligent than the average Kobold. They generally do not command more than a hundred or so Kobold, and are sparsely geared; having scavenged most of it from dead bodies, or other Throat Cutters. While these are almost as numerous as other Kobold themselves, they are more formidable opponents than the average runt. They rely on cunning and trickery to destroy their enemies with Kobold runts, rather than the brute force of Draazhin Brutes. Shamans: Kobold shamans double as both spiritual leaders, and military troops. They would just as quickly heal as they would destroy, having no qualms about getting up close and personal with their prey. Shamans are very large and smart, and are depicted as being covered in hardened bone-plate from head to toe, much like the Draazhin Brutes. Shamans are the vanguard of any host, equal to most frontline troops in both tactical skill and martial prowess. However, they do not use any magical offensive abilities. Warlocks: Kobold Warlocks are Shamans who use Arcyte to enhance their undeveloped magical abilities. While all shamans are born with some inherent magical ability from their ancestors, most of it has depleted due to diminishing returns. Warlocks are the Shamans who have access to the limited Arcyte of the Kobold, and are known to turn the tide of a battle using their powerful offensive magic. While not known to many, Warlocks are not adverse to eating other Kobold. Warlocks force-feed Arcyte to a Kobold runt before ingesting the Kobold and gaining more magical prowess. This allows the Warlocks to retain residual magical abilities, without the constant need to consume Arcyte. Negal Eaters: Eaters are the Kobold equivalent to special forces. These Kobold operate ahead of most established frontlines, picking apart supply caravans, raiding camps, inciting chaos, rallying mongrels, agitating beasts, and overall general disruptive operations. These operations are meant to destabilize frontlines, diverting troops and focus to away from the Kobold hosts, allowing the swarms of runts to overwhelm the enemy while they are distracted. They are quick, agile, stealthy, and capable of large scale hit and runs. When in times of occupation or loss, they double as guerrilla fighters, rallying broken Kobold into resistance forces. There have been many times where the attacking force has broken the back of the Kobold warmachine, only to have the Negal Eaters arrive and run the invaders into the ground. When deployed en masse, they ride atop mighty three legged warbeasts plated in scrap armor. (Brief)History:While not too much is known about the Kobold, what is known about them is that they were subservient to whatever powerful entity had arose during the age. Over time, these entities had grown to become the pantheon of Gods that the Kobold now worship. While all of them are not present in the world currently, they are not dead. Should a strong enough Warlock arise with enough backing, they very well could bring about another invasion, with the Kobold at the helm of civilization.